The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-12-23
HOW THE STATES RATIFIED.
A Series of Centenaries of the Consti.
tuition Now Passing.
From tn, Ncac York Sun.

from the Nc1c I ORR sun
WASHINGTON, Dec. 18-It is possible that
the example Just set by New Jersey in cele-
brating the hundredth anniversary of her
ratification of the Federal constitution will
now be followed by other States. There is
good ground for observing the whole series
of similar centennial e, ents, at least by
ceremonies of simple commemoration like
those held at New Brunswick, without
elaborate preparation or pretense. While
the constitution was completed and signed
by the Philadelphia Convention on Sept.
II, 1887, that act gave it no operative
force 1t was still only a document
for consideration by the States individually,
and somewhat in the position OF a bill in
Congress drawn up and reported favorably
by very influential committee. A great
difference, of course, was that the States
were to accept or reject it as whole, and
could not amend it, although they were at
liberty to suggest amendments The seventh
and final article of the instrument as framed
required the notifications of nine out of the
thirteen States in order to make it binding
between the States to ratlfylng. While a
sufficient number of notifications was gen.
orally hoped for, the matter was not free
from doubt There had been fierce OLSEN
sions during the process of framing, and,
although the final words of the document
showed that it was ''done in convention by
the unanimous consent of the STATES pres
ent,n only thirty-nine out of fifty-tive men,
bers actually signed it, even after Franklin's
final appeal for signatures to the engrossed
copy.
It is remarkable, therefore, that the cen
tenarieS of any of these State notifications
should have been allowed to pass without
public notice, in view of the Importance of
Il ~ NWrTf nr.h
they were successfully awaited. 1t is
especially singular that little Delaware,
which has the honor of being the first of the
thirteen States 10 accent Inc con- tlDutlon,
which she did on Dec.7, 1857, should not have
made something of the centenary of her &C
tion. The case OF Pennsylvania, which
ratified five days after Delaware, is a little
different, since she has SO recently held a
great celebration in honor of the framing
of the constitution, as to he able to pass in
silence her individual ratification of it. But
Delaware not only led the way for her great
sister S-ates, but adopted the constitution
by unanimous vote, whereas Pennsyl-
vania's convention accepted it after hot
debates, only by vote of 46 to %.
New Jersey was the third State to ratify,
and she, like Delaware, did so unanimously
The date was 100 years ago to-day, Dec. 10;
but as this was to fall on Sunday, the New
Brunswick celebration was held on Friday,
Dec 16, and Dec. 16, by the way, was on
Sunday in 1857.
The year 1888 opened with two ratifca-
tions-Georgia's, by unanimous vote on
Jan, 2, and Connecticuts by 12S to 40 a
week later. On Feb 6, came the ratltica-
ton of Massachusetts,, which was Regarded
everywhere as of great importance, there
Icing two well defined opinions in the State,
turning largely on the powers delegated by
tine States to the central government under
the new constitution. The convention was
remarkable for the high character and
ability of its members, and a popular
pressure was exerted on it by a grs at pop
ular meeting of Boston mechanics in favor
of the new constitution After very careful
consideration of the instrument, paragraph
by paragraph, the convention ratified it by
1877 votes against 16S. The vote was close,
and the majority was no doubt helped by
the outside demonstrations, and by their
conSenting to recommend no fewer than
nine amendments, which satisfied some OBJ
jectors.
Three more State notifications were then
needed. These came slowly, a period of
nearly three months intervening before the
first. On April Is, 1888, Maryland's con-
vention accepted the constitution by vote
of against IL, without suggesting amend
the current anxiety was expressed in the
concluding number of the famous series of
papers that had been published in New
York since the beginning of the year, and
called, when afterward collected In a
volume, The Federalist "In so arduous
an enterprise" said the writer 81 can re-
concile it to no rules of prudence. to
let go the hold we now have upon seven out
of the thirteen States, and, after having
passed over so considerable a part of the
ground, to recommence the course This
was in view of the talk of new convention
to modify the work OF the old one, and also
of possible unfavorable action by the inn
portant States of New York and Virginia.
South Carolina came with her share to
the work Of May % by vote of 149 to 70,
accompanied by the proposal of a few
amendments Not quite a month later,
June 81, New Hampshire, whose action was
no doubt largely influenced by that of Massa-
chusetts, followed with vote of 81 to 49,